I can’t think of any reason a new driver would need to learn this skill.
Illegal aliens drive 18-wheelers. They know how. Sort of.
Ford mustang gt 500 only have manual shifters.
When I bought my first vehicle (1980 pickup truck 4x4) I wanted a manual for off-road stuff so you could really get it into low gear.
When I bought my next vehicle (4x4 pickup in 2001) it was an automatic. I know they didn’t make a manual in the style, perhaps other styles or makes had it but not many.
I miss the low range the few times I need it. But it has the rear locking differential which I didn’t have before and that has come in handy a couple of times.
99.5% of my driving now is on pavement, so I don’t miss the manual.
Similarly, I learned photography on a manual SLR. Pentax K1000. I learned the relationships between aperture and shutter speed.
Now it is not necessary to learn these things. But the fact that I understand it makes me a better photographer.
And similarly again, the fact that I learned to drive on a stick shift makes me a better driver.
I made sure my children knew how to drive with a stick. Now, my grandchildren are learning to drive. I’d like to teach them as well but among parents and grandparents there are 8 vehicles and none are a manual transmission.
Likewise. I can’t think of any cars a normal person could afford that even offer a manual transmission any more. I know I’m a geezer, but I would hate to have to drive one in heavy traffic. There was a time you could argue better fuel economy, but not any more. We’re getting 28-32 mpg with a 6 cylinder Chrysler Pacifica on the highway, thanks in part to a 9 speed automatic.